I would NEVER EVER build with Arive Homes again. Our experience started off well with Zach, who was easy to work with, but went downhill from there.
Our design center experience was difficult and depressing, since our designer was less than helpful and not knowledgeable in what options were available, and in some cases she double-charged, and did not make changes after multiple times being asked. This became a bigger problem during construction, since plumbing and windows were installed incorrectly, even after we had pointed her mistakes out more than once, and were assured, prior to construction, that they would be corrected. (other neighbors on our street had the same problems). Arive stood behind her, and even charged a change fee, even though it was their designer's mistake, and after we sent their managers the email conversations where she promised it would be changed well before construction started.
When we did our first walkthrough, they had the wrong fireplace, wrong furnace, and wrong power meter, all of which we paid extra for in upgrades. Two of the windows in the great room, that were supposed to open, were fixed windows.
We upgraded to a higher level of countertops. When we did this in our former home, the sink that came with the upgrade was also upgraded. The sink we got from Arive has to be one of the cheapest sinks, which pops and pings when cleaning it because the material is so thin.
We paid for the grand master bathroom, expecting it to be "grand" and had to fight to get items resolved. The backsplash was installed with a very noticeable seam, which should have been in one piece. It took over two months to get them to come out and replace it, and when they did, the piece didn't match in height, so they had to remove the end pieces and cut them down also. It took another month or more to get them out to fix the paint and caulk.
The bathtub was covered in scratches, and it took forever to convince Arive to come fix it. They were able to lessen the scratches but they are still there on the surface. Our large master bath also came without a heat duct and I was told by Arive warranty that it shouldn't have one and that it would be illegal for them to put one in. I had to go through the HVAC company myself, and they promptly came out and fixed it.
The paint used on the trim and closet shelves is either low grade, or incorrect for this use. Even after living here for months, the paint still maintains a stickiness that if items are left sitting on them, it pulls the paint off when they are moved.
Our fan in the powder bath was wired to run 24/7, even though code did not require it, which I found out from the building department. The electricians also did an extremely poor job, including at least 3 cases where the building department had to order Arive to fix the violations, after we moved in and I identified the problems.
Our concrete still looks horrible. We had to fight with them to come out and fix it twice, and each time it got worse. The second time they cut through my sprinkler controller line, and tore up our grass. I had to fix the line so that our grass would not die, because Arive did not get the landscaper back to fix it for well over 3 weeks. They still have not fixed our torn up grass and have left boards nailed to our foundation from the second repair job. They also sent a "professional" company out to fix divots and chips in the concrete, and they look like a child did the repair. Oh, and we have concrete footprints on our porch that do not come off, from the first time they repaired our concrete. I was appalled when Andrew, from warranty, told us that the driveway only had to be functional, not look nice.
One of the other fun things was trying to plant plants and trees in the planting areas, and finding 2x4s and large chunks of concrete that were buried just below the surface, instead of being thrown into their dumpsters which are there for that purpose.
Our biggest disappointment was that within a couple months of closing, Arive Homes tacked on a $15k increase to our base price. We were given the choice of walking away with a refund of our down payment, or take the increase. If we had refused either, they would have canceled the contract based on a clause that says they can cancel anytime for any reason.
Warranty has also been very disappointing. A customer should never have to fight to get things corrected in a brand new house. Too many times I used their warranty site to submit issues and they would just disappear with no explanation. I had to send multiple text messages to get them resolved. Many times warranty would send me to the superintendent, who would direct me back to warranty, or ghost me.
These are just some of the major issues we had, but there are many more! If you want more info, then you can reach out to me about our experience.
I would advise anyone reading this to look elsewhere for a builder!!! read more
